Chapter 12 - Exercise Primally: Move, Lift, And Sprint! Flashcards
Primal Blueprints three basic exercise laws:
- Move frequently at a slow pace
- Lift heavy objects regularly
- Perform occasional all-out sprint workouts
The ultimate Primal Movement
Brief, all-out sprints
Brief, all-out sprints:
- promote hormone balance
- stimulate lean muscle development
- accelerate fat metabolism
- enhance organ function to delay aging
- increase longevity
- promote breakthroughs past fitness and body composition plateaus
Low-level cardio sessions alone
Won’t increase fat metabolism dramatically enough to significantly reduce excess body fat, but they will enhance fat metabolism both during exercise and at rest
Regular brief, intense strength and sprint sessions
Raise metabolic rate and body temperature both during and after exercise
Ideal fat percentage range for men
10-18%
Ideal fat percentage ranges for women
14-24% (for a lean, toned physique)
The best exercise program is
The one you stick with
*so do the activities and individual workouts that you enjoy the most while hearing to the philosophical principles represented by the three exercise exercise related primal blueprint laws
- move frequently
- lift heavy things
- sprint (once in awhile)
This will promote maximum health, wellness, and longevity
A pattern of chronic cardio
(sustained, frequent aerobic activity above your maximum aerobic heart rate), triggers:
- excessive stress hormone production
- anaerobic metabolism with glucose as the primary energy source
- lactate accumulation in the bloodstream
The Move Frequently law means:
- finding as many ways as possible to move more throughout every day —avoid being too sedentary.
- conducting structured aerobic workouts (cardio, machines, hiking, swimming, cycling, walking/jogging/running, depending on your fitness level) or below your maximum aerobic heart rate of 180-age and not in chronic patterns
- Adding complementary flexibility/mobility, endeavors such as yoga, Pilates, tai chi, gymnastics, mobility/rehab drills, and properly conducted stretching exercise
Most important component of the “move frequently” mandate
Is not the structured workout but just becoming more active in daily life…
Regular brief, intense resistance workouts
- stimulate a spike in adaptive hormones (such as testosterone and human growth hormone) into the bloodstream
- improve organ reserve
- accelerate fat loss
- increase energy
PEMs
Primal Essential Movements
- squats
- pushups
- pull-ups
- planks
Push-up exercise progression
Easy = wall push-up
Intermediate = incline pushup
Baseline (essential mastery movement) = push-up
Pull-up exercise progression
Easy = chair assisted pull-up
Intermediate = chin-up with inverted grip
Baseline (essential mastery movement) = pull-up with overhand grip
If you ability to squat is poor
You will develop adverse posture and movement mechanics that will increase the stream on your spine, knees, and other joints
Squat exercise progression
Easy = assisted squat
Essential mastery movement = baseline squad
Plank exercise progression
Easy = forearm/knee plank
Intermediate = hand/feet plank
Essential mastering movement = baseline elbow/feet plank
Planes that are fundamentally important to move through include:
- squat
- lunge
- hinge
- push
- pull
- rotation
Bird-dogs and dead-bugs
Also entrain the anti-rotation system by connecting an arm to the opposite leg via a series of muscles and connective tissue known as the “diagonal slings”
Hormetic Effect
A favorable response to inappropriate exposure to stress
- Such as sprinting, which elicits a brief/intermittent stress response
- When the stressors is removed and as the body slows to a state relaxation, biochemical signals produce a cascade of neuroendocrine, hormonal and gene expression that stimulates:
- lean muscle development
- optimize fat metabolism
- enhance organ reserve
to promote both peak performance and longevity
Sprint workouts
Duration = 8-20sec, perhaps up to 30sec for a low- or no-impact sprint like cycling
You need never do more than six sprints per session
The emphasis is always quality over quantity
When sprint runs are conducted on a regular basis
A strong signal is sent to the genes to optimize body composition
Running
The most beneficial type of sprinting because it’s weight-bearing nature improves bone density and provides greater stimulation for muscle gain and toning